Principal’s Report 08/22/2014
Dear Lumen Family:
It was a wonderful first week of school! Our enrollment numbers are strong and we have more students at the school now than we did this time last year. You can feel the excitement of faculty, staff , and students as we begin the new school year. Although most of our faculty is the same from last year, we are pleased to have the Parochial Vicar of St. Benedict’s, Rev. Jacob Stronach, O.S.B., join the Lumen faculty in our Theology Department. Fr. Leo and Fr. Jacob are both inspirations to the school and to the students. It is a real blessing to have two priests serving Lumen Christi with daily visits. We were also pleased to receive the school results from the ACT, test a college admissions test, used by most universities. Lumen’s average school score was a 25 composite, 4 points higher than the state and national average composite of 21. We thank you for your prayers as we begin the new year and would encourage you to visit our Facebook page to experience the new year through photos. Other important announcements include:
Athletic Department Update. In a great start to the season opener, LCHS Jr High beat Birchwood 7-0. The team was led by Nathan Dickhaus with 5 goals, Kirsten Marshall with 1 goal and 2 assists, Julia Alfano with 1 goal and 1 assist and Kaiya Thorsness with 2 assists. It was a great team effort by all.
LCHS Sr. High did a great job coming back from a 3-0 deficit early in the second half and scored two quick goals to make Birchwood sweat out a hard earned victory. LCHS was led by Ryan Heilala with 1 goal, Jarrett Fortune with one 1 goal, and Riley Jones with 1 assist. Sophia Thorsness played the whole game and was a great team leader on defense. All players gave a great effort in fighting back and never giving up.
The school sports calendar is on the webpage. Please come to a game to cheer on and support our students at a future game. We are very proud of our teams, the Christian example they show on the field, and their wonderful sportsmanship. Go Archangels!
Schedule Changes. All student schedule changes must be completed by 2:30 PM next Friday, August 29. More information regarding class change polices can be found in the Student Handbook.
Grade 10 Gala Project. Mrs. Fortune is looking for unique wooden chairs for the 10th grade Gala project. She will come by to assess the item to ensure that it is appropriate for the student project. Please call her at (907) 337-8964 for assessment and pick-up.
Girls Basketball Coach. Elgin and his wife are expecting their third child and due to the long commute from the Valley, he does not believe he can coach for us this year. Therefore, we are looking for a new HS girls’ team basketball coach. If you are interested and/or know someone, please have them contact Mr. Hunt at (907) 273-1513.
Gold Cards. Gold cards are an important way to raise money for our science department, so the school can buy materials and supplies for the laboratory experiments. This is the last weekend to sell Gold Cards at St. Elizabeth’s Parish. Money from gold card sales should be turned in soon. Please do your best to sell as many cards as possible. If you are out of cards and want to sell more, please see Mrs. Estes at the front desk.
Fostering a Christian Home. Dr. Marcellino D’Ambrosio will be giving a presentation about “Keeping Your Kids Catholic” at Lumen Christi on Sunday, August 24 from 2 PM to 4 PM in room 104. The presentation will cover how to strike the balance between formal religious education in the home, and teaching by example, between affection and discipline, the role of parents and the help of other adults. You’ll walk away with clear strategies that you can implement in your own family life.
Alaska State Fair Visit. The Juniors and Seniors will be taking their annual pilgrimage to the Alaska State Fair on Thursday, August 28. They are looking forward to an afternoon of fun and Christian fellowship.
Community Service Opportunity. St. Elizabeth Ann Seton is looking for a few Lumen Christi High School volunteers to help watch children in the nursery for their “Back to School Night” on August 28 from 6 PM until 8:30 or 9 PM. Please contact St. Elizabeth Ann Seton at (907) 345-3712 if you have additional questions or to volunteer.
Ninth Annual Ian Robbins Memorial Trick or Treat in the Heat. Sunday, September 7, 2014. Pre-event festivities start around 5:30 PM at the end of Yukon Charlie Loop, with door-to-door Trick or Treating from 6 to 8 PM. Trick or Treat in the Heat is a neighborhood-wide early Halloween celebration. Anyone who has experienced Trick or Treat with late October Alaskan weather knows what a borderline-miserable experience it can be for our kids (and parents)! By holding it in early September, the kids get to wear their costumes without the cold weather gear. If you are interested in helping out with the event, please contact Lumen parent Erica Dufrane at (907) 248-9513
Parent Volunteer Organization (PVO). Parent involvement is very important for the success of Lumen Christi. If you are interested in helping with an event, please be aware that we’ve largely switched our signups to VolunteerSpot from Signup Genius, though going forward we may use Genius for some signups as well. VolunteerSpot has a single page where all our current signups should always be listed. Here is the link for opportunities: http://vols.pt/9tj8Ji?utm_source=group-badge-volunteer-green .
Remember, if you sign up for something on-line or not, you still are responsible for keeping up with your share hours and recording them in the share hour book in the front office. If it isn’t convenient to go in, you can email them to Mrs. Estes in the front office and she will get them recorded for you. Also, another reminder — time spent selling gold cards can’t be counted as volunteering for parents or students.
We have some open positions in PVO. We are looking for a ‘PVO Vice-President’. This person will shadow PVO President Gail Grafton and eventually take over as PVO President at the end of Gail’s term. We are also looking for a ‘Gold Card Chair’. Our current chair is stepping down after this year and is ready to train her replacement. This is an important position that helps raise money for the school. The ‘Teacher and Staff Appreciation Chair’ position is also open. This person takes the lead in organizing small activities and events to show our awesome teachers and staff much we appreciate them. And finally, we are looking for a ‘Craft Bazaar Assistant’. This person will help Michell Goodwin, the Craft Bazaar Chair, organize the volunteers, secure vendors, and run this important fundraising event. If you are interested in a position, please leave a message at the front desk and we will ask someone to follow-up with you.
We look forward to the new school year and encourage all of you to remember the Lumen community in your daily prayers. May God bless all of those who support the LCHS ministry of St. Benedict Parish.
God Bless, John